In one of the last concurrent sessions, Tiffani Alexander and Janelle Harris from ACC Docket and Marilynn Jacobs of Quebecor World explained how Gens X and Y can change the face of association publishing.
Jacobs kicked off the session by explaining the potential she sees in Generations X and Y These are the three areas in which she believes the next generation can impact the industry:
"Young professionals also help us understand how to put the reader at the center of our process," Jacobs said. "Make your publication personal and urgent."
Alexander and Harris represented Generation Y with their portion of the presentation. "Gen Y has been called a group of coddled slackers, but that's simply untrue," Harris said. "We are connected and we demand the best of ourselves."
They explained the best ways to win over quality Gen Y employees:
"Allow your young staffers to be front and center," Alexander said. "They will be in charge of the publications you've spent your career building, so you want to find new talent to take over when you're ready to move on."
Jacobs kicked off the session by explaining the potential she sees in Generations X and Y These are the three areas in which she believes the next generation can impact the industry:
- Acceleration--With growing numbers of Facebook and Twitter users, print publications now require acceleration. "Gen X and Gen Y understand real-time content and have the energy and knowledge to post it," she said.
- Personalization--Readers now have the desire to select content slices rather than read the entire product. This overwhelming amount of information creates a higher need for customization print to readers' needs.
- Visualization--A generation raised on electronic media favors moving images. Multi-tasking media consumption patterns indicate that they favor images over long text, and these generations understand the need for visual publications.
"Young professionals also help us understand how to put the reader at the center of our process," Jacobs said. "Make your publication personal and urgent."
Alexander and Harris represented Generation Y with their portion of the presentation. "Gen Y has been called a group of coddled slackers, but that's simply untrue," Harris said. "We are connected and we demand the best of ourselves."
They explained the best ways to win over quality Gen Y employees:
- Build a reputation as a company that welcomes young people, their ideas and their ambitions.
- Get connected through social networks to find young professionals that can help your association.
- Visit career placement offices at Universities and find out about job fairs and other opportunities to find young journalism students on campus.
"Allow your young staffers to be front and center," Alexander said. "They will be in charge of the publications you've spent your career building, so you want to find new talent to take over when you're ready to move on."
Leave a comment